Ben turned restlessly in his bed, tangling the sheets even more uncomfortably around his legs. This whole situation was becoming impossible! He looked over at Ray, apparently fast asleep on his bed of pillows and down comforters. He was snoring! Ben waited a moment for the soft sound to re-occur. Definitely a snore! How could he possibly sleep with this racket going on?
And Ray’s incessant trips to the bathroom! He MUST have a prostate problem. Perhaps, as a friend, he should drop a little hint.
As another quiet snore drifted towards him, Ben acknowledged reluctantly that he would never be able to do that. He was such an arrant coward. If he had Ray’s honesty and courage, he would never have hidden his feelings like this. Ray certainly wouldn’t. If their positions had been reversed, if Ray had loved him, he would have admitted it. But Ben knew he could never do that... The problem was, that he simply couldn’t sleep when Ray was near him like this. Even though he wasn’t wearing the red long-johns, it had proved impossible to resist his baser impulses. He thought it was probably Ray’s pyjamas which had affected him so intensely. They were so... so sexy... He couldn’t sleep a wink, and every morning Ray had found him bleary eyed and exhausted from tossing and turning all night.
At least Ray never found out about his uncomfortable condition. He made sure he never got out of bed until after Ray had left for work in the morning, no matter how painful the demands of his bladder became.
Of course, he was able to sleep during the day, once Ray had left and he’d been able to relieve his... feelings. But then Ray would come back to the apartment at mid-day and in the evening to find him groggy with sleep. Ray had become convinced that he was seriously ill. Yesterday, he’d suggested that he should stay and nurse him during the day. That would have been disastrous! Thank God, he’d been able to talk Ray out of that!
He rolled over again, but there was no way he could get comfortable. It was indecent. Then he made the mistake of lying face down. He groaned. There was only one thing he could do, really. It made him nervous just to think of it, but he was sure Ray was sleeping soundly, so he’d have to risk it. He’d just have to be very, very careful. He unbuttoned his shorts and pushed them down slightly.
If he kept his face buried in the pillow and just... moved a bit, that would do the trick. He moved a bit. It felt quite good actually. The sheets were just a little rougher than the material of his shorts and it was an interesting sensation. He moved a bit more and wondered what flannel would feel like against his cock. Oops! Oh well, at least now he could relax. He turned his head slightly on the pillow so as not to suffocate and fell asleep instantly.
*
It was disgustingly early in the morning when Ray woke. But he was getting very worried about Benny, he seemed to be in a terrible mess, and simply refused to see a doctor or to let Ray stay with him during the day. Last night, Ray was sure he’d heard him groaning, but when he’d got out of his nest of blankets and gone to the bed, Benny had been fast asleep, a little smile on his face.
If Benny wasn’t any better this morning, he was definitely going to take the day off and stay with him. Ray levered himself off the floor and went over to check on his patient. He was still lying face down, but the covers had slipped almost to his waist and his white T-shirt was rucked and twisted around his body. So he’d had a restless night? Ray’s lips tightened.
He reached out his hand and touched the slightly flushed brow. It didn’t feel very hot. Unable to resist the temptation he gently stroked a few strands of hair away. Benny moaned softly and he withdrew his hand cautiously. Benny settled again. He really ought to cover him up, only the sheets and blankets were so twisted around him it was impossible. Ray put a hand lightly on Benny’s shoulder. The T-shirt felt damp. Alarmed, he slid his hand down over the broad back. Definitely damp. Benny must have had a fever in the night, and now he could easily get chilled.
“Benny.” He shook the broad shoulder gently and his friend stirred and rolled onto his back.
The covers had slipped even lower and Ray caught a heart stopping glimpse of bare pale skin. By the time he’d recovered, Benny was wide awake and looking at him sulkily. He’d been in quite a mood ever since he’d got sick.
“What do you want, Ray?” Benny’s voice was distinctly grumpy.
“Are you OK? Your T-shirt’s damp.” He put a hand down to where Benny had been lying. “And so are the sheets. Are you getting night sweats?”
“I’m fine Ray. You shouldn’t fuss so much. I slept quite well last night, actually.”
Ray shook his head worriedly. “I dunno... I don’t like this.”
Belatedly Benny pulled the covers up a little. “Don’t worry. Perhaps it was the last of the fever burning out. I feel much better this morning. I’m just a little tired.”
“Well... OK. But maybe I should stay home today. So you don’t have to get out of bed.”
Benny sighed. “Well, I don’t Ray. At least, not much. Just to wash and get a drink of water occasionally.”
“You see? If I was here you wouldn’t even have to do that. I could get the water for you. I could even give you... you know... a bed bath.”
Ray knew, as soon as the words were out of his mouth, that he’d made a terrible mistake. His cock, up till now behaving pretty well, twanged to attention almost audibly. He bent over slightly, blessing the fact he liked his pyjamas over-sized. Benny was staring at him with that startled rabbit look he usually reserved for Frannie.
“Uhhh... well, maybe not. Hang on a minute, Benny. I gotta go to the bathroom.” He bolted.
*
Ben heard the door snap shut with a sigh of relief. He waited for a moment until he felt sure Ray wouldn’t suddenly return. At least he could be sure of a good five minutes once Ray was in there. He dived beneath the covers and located his shorts, somewhere in the region of his knees. How had they got so far down his legs? He pulled them back up and buttoned them securely.
The state of the sheets was another matter, but there was nothing he could do about them until Ray left. He straightened them reflecting gloomily that if he hadn’t been so self indulgent during the night, he could have taken Ray up on that offer of a bed bath...
*
Ray bit his lip and stroked a bit harder. He was getting quite good at this. Usually, secure in his room, he didn’t have to worry too much about making a noise, within reason at least. Today though, he was badly rattled. How could he have made such a stupid suggestion?
He knew what it was... that glimpse of pale skin... he even thought he’d seen a trace of fine dark hair just below Benny’s navel. He moaned softly and then clenched his teeth as his hips began to pump furiously.